Took all decisions without fear or discrimination: CJP Khosa

ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Asif Saeed Khosa said on Friday that he had taken all decisions as a judge without fear or discrimination.

He made these remarks ahead of his farewell speech as chief justice during a full court reference. The chief justice, who was retiring after midnight, also said a horrendous campaign against him and the judiciary had been started after the special court released its verdict in the high treason case against General (retd) Pervez Musharraf a few days ago.

The special court sentenced the former military dictator to death for abrogating the Constitution and imposing a state of emergency in the country on November 3, 2007. Paragraph 66 of the verdict called on law enforcement agencies to arrest Musharraf and if found dead, drag his corpse to the D-Chowk in Islamabad and hang it for three days.

The chief justice talked about allegations against him that he had supported the special court’s verdict against Musharraf in a meeting with journalists. “Accusations that I exerted undue influence on this [Musharraf high treason] case are baseless,” he said. “I hope the truth will come out about this.”

In his speech during the reference, the CJP said he always did what he thought was right and was worth doing and it did not matter to him as to what the reaction or consequences would or could be.

“I believe that a judge, besides being just and fair to all, should have a heart of a lion, nerves of steel, wisdom of a sage, expression of a man of letters and approach full of empathy and compassion. These were the ideals that I strived to follow but I do not know how successfully,” he said. “I can, however, confidently say, and Allah Almighty be my witness for it, that I always tried to be true to the oath of my office. I gave my hundred per cent to the job, tried to perform beyond the call of duty, never raised my voice, spoke mainly through my pen, never delayed a judgment unduly and after giving the best years of my life to this public service I lay down my robes today with a conscience which is clear as crystal.”

He concluded: “I, however, in all humility at my command, seek forgiveness from all those in whose cases my judgment might have gone wrong unwittingly and also from those whose feelings I might have hurt unintentionally.”

Meanwhile, Attorney General Anwar Mansoor Khan on Friday criticised Chief Justice Khosa for adopting “a different standard” for additional judges relating to extension in their tenures. The accusations were made in a written speech by Khan at the full court reference. The government’s lawyer accused the chief justice of adhering to a different standard when it came to the case of extending the tenure of additional judges.

The attorney general did not attend the full court reference held in honour of Justice Khosa. Justice Gulzar Ahmed will take charge as Chief Justice from Saturday (today).

Khan said a different standard was used by the chief justice when it came to the government’s decision to extend General Qamar Javed Bajwa’s tenure as the Chief of Army Staff for three more years.

The attorney general said the chief justice had supported the decision of the special court against Gen Musharraf in the high treason case before the detailed verdict came out.